Rotary control valve

ABSTRACT

A rotary control valve which includes a rotatable valve body, a valve cap engageable with a portion of the outer periphery of the valve body as the valve body rotates and a channeled formation in the outer periphery of the rotatable valve body to establish communication between passages in the valve cap during part of the cycle of the valve body.

United States Patent Warren D. Reinert York, Pa.

Oct. 1, 1969 Oct. 5, 1971 John C. Motter Printing Press Co. York, Pa.

lnventor Appl. No. Filed Patented Asslgnee ROTARY CONTROL VALVE 9 Claims, 2 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl 137/624.15, 251/174 Int. Cl Fl6k 5/00 Field of Search l 37/624.13, 624.15, 624.18, 622, 625.21 625.22; 251/624.13, 624.15, 624.18, 624.2, 625.21, 625.22

VACUUM SUPPLY [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 896,943 8/1908 Rutledge 137/625.21 X 914,771 3/1909 Wilkey 137/625.21 X 3,237,644 3/1906 Beck l37/625.21 X

Primary Examiner-Alan Cohan AttorneyBrumbaugh, Graves, Donohue and Raymond ABSTRACT: A rotary control valve which includes a rotatable valve body, a valve cap engageable with a portion of the outer periphery of the valve body as the valve body rotates and a channeled formation in the outer periphery of the rotatable valve body to establish communication between passages in the valve cap during part of the cycle of the valve body.

PATENTED mm s |97l INVIiN'IUR. WARREN D. REINERT his ATTORNEYS PATENTED 013T 51971 SHEET 2 [1F 2 To VACUUM 4 SUPPLY q gig |l|| lll| Z/ I lH A 5 7 II .7? x N" [Iv 5 j I 4 24/ i 1" Tfipp J l X 5 6 7 I INVIL'N'I ()R. WARREN D. REINERT his ATTORNEYS ROTARY CONTROL VALVE This invention relates to a novel rotary control valve.

The principal components of the rotary control valve of the present invention are a rotatable valve body having a channeled formation in the outer periphery thereof and a valve head or cap which seats against a portion of the outer circumference of the valve body. The valve cap has a pair of ports or passages formed therein which are out of communication with each other by reason of the engagement of the outer periphery of the rotatable valve body with the valve cap until communication between the ports or passages is established by the channeled formation in the outer periphery of the rotating valve body.

Unlike conventional rotary control valves which are enclosed within housings, the rotary control valve of the present invention has no enclosing housing, and the parts thereof are accessible and easy to maintain. The rotary control valve also embodies such desirable features as dependability, smooth rotation and rapid tum-on and tumoff characteristics.

In a preferred form of the rotary control valve, the valve housing is made up of a pair of relatively adjustable segments each having a channel formed in the outer periphery which is in open communication with the other channel. Thus, by adjusting the segments relative to each other about the axis of rotation of the valve body, the duration of the open communication between the passages of the valve cap can be regulated.

Another ancillary feature of the rotary control valve of the present invention is the means for supporting the valve cap against the rotary valve body in such a way that it self-aligns itselfthereon.

For a more complete understanding of the present invention reference can be made to the detailed description which fol lows and to the accompanying drawings in which:

H0. 1 is a front elevational view of the control valve of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a view taken along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

The control valve of the present invention is shown and described in conjunction with a vacuum system of a signaturegathering machine. However, its use is not limited to such systems and machines, and it is applicable for use in pressure systems and many other types of systems and apparatus.

The control valve includes a rotatable valve body 1 composed of two side-by-side annular disklike segments 2 and 3. The outer face of the valve body segment 3 has a clamp 4 formed thereon for clamping the valve body on a rotatable shaft 5. The clamp 4 is a split open ring tightened on the shaft 5 by a screw 6 which bridges the open part of the split ring.

The valve body segments 2 and 3 are locked together by screws 7 so that they constitute a composite valve body. The valve body segment 3 has arcuate slots 8 therein through which the screws pass to permit the segments to be adjusted relative to each other about the axis of rotation.

The valve body segments 2 and 3 have channels 9 and 10, respectively, formed in their outer peripheries at the .inner side-by-side faces of the valve body segments so that the channels are in open communication with each other.

A valve head or cap 11 frictionally engages the outer periphery of the valve body as the valve body rotates. The valve cap does not engage more than 180 of the outer periphery of the valve body, and to minimize friction and reduce wear the valve cap preferably engages less than 180 of the outer periphery of the valve body.

The valve cap has two separate passages 12 and 13 formed therein. The passage 13 a conduit 14 with the channel of the valve segment 3, and the passage 12 connects a conduit 15 with the channel 9 of the valve body segment 2.

In the particular application of the control valve shown in the drawings, the conduit 14 is connected with a vacuum pump or other vacuum source, and the conduit 15 is connected with a manifold 16. The manifold 16 carries a plurality of suction heads 19, and pivotal motion is imparted to the manifold by a cam-operated actuating means 25 (see FIG. 2) to carry the suction heads into engagement with the sheets or signatures 20 handled by the machine.

The valve head or cap 11 is held in self-aligning position seated on the valve body by link 21 which is pivotally connected at the other end to the valve cap. The axes of the pivotal connections of the link are substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of the valve body. A spring 23 interposed between the bracket 22 and the valve cap provides sufficient pressure to assure proper sealing between the valve cap and the valve body. The spring, the pull of the vacuum and the weight of the valve cap combine to'keep the valve cap seated on the cylindrical surface. Preferably the line A connecting the axes of the pivotal connections of the link 21 and the line B passing through the axes of the shaft 5 and the pivot between the link 21 and the valve cap are at right angles. Hence, in the plane of rotation the function of the link will prevent valve cap rotation without introducing any other undesirable constraint. The limited freedom afforded the valve cap by this arrangement makes further holding, guiding or locking of the valve cap unnecessary.

As the valve body rotates with the valve cap seated thereon, the channels 9 and 10 are brought into communication with the vacuum source as soon as the channel 10 comes into communication with the passage 13 of the valve cap. The channels 9 and 10, in turn, are in communication with the suction heads 19 while the channel 9 is in communication with the passage 12. 1t is apparent, therefore, that by adjusting the relative positions of the valve body segments 2 and 3 about the axis of rotation, the duration ofathe time that the valve body establishes communication between the vacuum source and the suction heads can be regulated.

The valve body segment 2 carries a vent hole 24 which is spaced apart behind the trailing end of the channel 9. Even after the communication between the vacuum source and the suction heads is cut off, the outer surface of the valve body maintains the passage 12 closed, retaining the vacuum in the conduit 15 and the manifold 16. When the vent hole 24 comes into communication with the passage 12 the conduit 15 and the manifold 16 are vented, thereby providing an instantaneous signature release.

In the design of the valve body the maximum length of the channels 9 and 10 is preferably less than half the total length of the valve cap.

The invention has been shown and described in preferred form and by way of example, and obviously many modifications and variations may be made therein within the spirit of the invention. For example, the valve body can be made in one piece rather than in separate segments locked together. Furthermore, means can be provided to facilitate the actual alignment of the segments 2 and 3 such as, for example, by a centrally located tube or other means projecting laterally from one of the segments which receives one or more complementary holes in the other segment. In this connection, by way of illustration, the clamp 4 can be connected to the valve body segment 2 through an intermediate laterally extending tube so that the clamp and intermediate tube can be used as a pilot to receive the annular segment 3, thereby facilitating the axial alignment of the valve body segments 2 and 3. lt may also be desirable to provide both segments 2 and 3 with separate clamps 4 for locking each of the segments directly to the shaft 5.

lclaim:

l. A rotary control valve comprising a rotatable valve body, said valve body being a composite of two segments each having a channel formed in the outer periphery which is in open communication with the other channel, a valve cap engageable with a portion of the outer periphery of the valve body as the valve body rotates, a pair of passages in the valve cap, the

combined lengths of the channels being less than the length of the contact between the valve body and the valve cap to establish communication between the passages of the valve cap during part of each revolution of the valve body and means for adjusting the relative positions of the segments about the axis of rotation of the valve body to regulate the duration of the open communication through the valve body between the passages in the valve cap. i

2. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 in which the valve body is annular and mounted on a rotatable shaft and including a split open ring carried by the valve body for clamping it on the rotatable shaft, and means bridging the open part of the split ring for tightening it onto the shaft.

3. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 in which said adjustable means includes an arcuate slot in one of the segments and a locking screw which passes through the arcuate slot and is threaded into the other segment.

4. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 including means for biasing the cap against the rotatable valve body.

5. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 including a rigid support and a link connecting the rigid support and the valve cap and pivotally connected to both on axes substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of the valve body, and means biasing the valve cap against the rotatable valve body, the said valve cap being self aligning with the valve body.

6. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 5 in which the biasing means includes a spring interposed between the rigid support and the valve cap.

7. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 5 in which a line through the axes of the pivots of the link is substantially at right angles to a line through the axis of rotation of the valve body and the axis of the pivot connecting the valve cap and the link.

8. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 in which one of the passages in the valve cap is in communication with a source of suction and the other passage is adapted to be connected with the source of suction through the channels and including a vent opening in the outer periphery of the valve body for venting only said other passage.

9. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 in which said pair of passages is intermediate the leading and trailing ends of the valve cap and the combined lengths of the channels is less than half the length of contact between the valve body and the valve cap.

mg UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3,610,281 Dated October 5, 1971 Inventor) Warren D. Relnert It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 1, line 65, after "13" insert connects-.

Signed and sealed this 15th day of August 1.972.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. ROBERT GO'IISCHALK Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents 

1. A rotary control valve comprising a rotatable valve body, said valve body being a composite of two segments each having a channel formed in the outer periphery which is in open communication with the other channel, a valve cap engageable with a portion of the outer periphery of the valve body as the valve body rotates, a pair of passages in the valve cap, the combined lengths of the channels being less than the length of the contact between the valve body and the valve cap to establish communication between the passages of the valve cap during part of each revolution of the valve body and means for adjusting the relative positions of the segments about the axis of rotation of the valve body to regulate the duration of the open communication through the valve body between the passages in the valve cap.
 2. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 in which the valve body is annular and mounted on a rotatable shaft and including a split open ring carried by the valve body for clamping it on the rotatable shaft, and means bridging the open part of the split ring for tightening it onto the shaft.
 3. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 in which said adjustable means includes an arcuate slot in one of the segments and a locking screw which passes through the arcuate slot and is threaded into the other segment.
 4. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 including means for biasing the cap against the rotatable valve body.
 5. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 including a rigid support and a link connecting the rigid support and the valve cap and pivotally connected to both on axes substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of the valve body, and means biasing the valve cap against the rotatable valve body, the said valve cap being self aligning with the valve body.
 6. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 5 in which the biasing means includes a spring interposed between the rigid support and the valve cap.
 7. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 5 in which a line through the axes of the pivots of the link is substantially at right angles to a line through the axis of rotation of the valve body and the axis of the pivot connecting the valve cap and the link.
 8. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 in which one of the passages in the valve cap is in communication with a source of suction and the other passage is adapted to be connected with the source of suction through the channels and including a vent opening in the outer periphery of the valve body for venting only said other passage.
 9. A rotary control valve as set forth in claim 1 in which said pair of passages is intermediate the leading and trailing ends of the valve cap and the combined lengths of the channels is less than half the length of contact between the valve body and the valve cap. 